City crews working to drain melting snow from streets

With a string of warmer days upon us, our considerable snow cover is starting to melt. That’s led to street flooding in some parts of town, because all our snow is blocking some of the catch basins that drain water into the storm sewer. To help drain the standing water, the City of Minneapolis has crews out today dedicated solely to clearing snow from storm drains in problem areas.

Residents who see street flooding in their area should call 311 to report it. That way, a crew can be assigned to clear out the storm drain. This afternoon, eight Public Works crews are out with loaders and other equipment to clear the storm drains at street corners. Each crew can clear snow from 20 to 30 intersections a day.

Crews have been working to clear snow from the streets throughout the winter season, and they began focusing on clearing storm drains late last week. Based on the snow melt in previous years, Public Works has identified roughly 220 intersections throughout the City where clearing the storm drains is a priority. So far, crews have cleared more than 120 intersections, in addition to responding to 311 calls. Public Works anticipates that this work will continue through this week and in the future as necessary.